The Most Comforting Meatloaf Recipe

Nobody just rolls out a meatloaf to the dinner table. The customary feast is ruled by those grand baked orbs: turkey and ham. Bah. Pound for pound, neither of those — despite the hours in the oven and all that carving — can match a good meat loaf in intensity of flavor and crowd-pleasing potential.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Melt butter in small skillet over medium heat and sweat onions and garlic until translucent. Let onions cool. Place remaining ingredients and onion mixture in large bowl and mix with your hands. Oil a 9-by-5-inch meat-loaf pan with blended olive oil and place mixture in pan, pressing down and packing medium tight (or mold into a meat-loaf shape and place in shallow roasting pan). Bake for 40 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 170 degrees. Remove from pan.

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Michael Symon appears on Iron Chef America. He is the owner of Lola in Cleveland and the author of the new book Live to Cook.

The Story Behind the Ultimate Meatloaf

Nobody rolls out a meatloaf to the holiday table. The customary feast is ruled by those grand baked orbs: turkey and ham. Bah. Pound for pound, neither of those — despite the hours in the oven and all that carving — can match a good meat loaf in intensity of flavor and crowd-pleasing potential. The rich kernels of fat in the ground meats seep and bubble throughout it, spreading flavor like the white ribbons in a well marbled steak. Meat loaf is beautiful. Plus, it's cheap as hell and easy to make. As Michael Symon (who is, of course, an Iron Chef) will tell you, a few simple rules can lead you to countless variations on the traditional loaf. That's the paradox: Following the rules is what allows you to innovate. "My philosophy is, you can pull big flavor from simple ingredients if you follow a process," says Symon. "It's all about the formula." And you can make a truckload weeks in advance, so meat loaf actually relieves holiday stress. (Make one at a time, and let the pan cool between baking. Freeze unsliced.)